Smith was demoted for his play, not his concussion

There is no denying that Alex Smith has played well. He ranks in the top three in yards-per-attempt, completion percentage, and accuracy percentage (completions minus drops and throw aways). He’s been as accurate as Peyton Manning when under pressure, and he’s completed the same percentage of deep passes as Aaron Rodgers. In this regard, his benching is an injustice–one made more severe when we consider the circumstances which lead to Colin Kaepernick’s playing time.

But Smith’s recent success shouldn’t overshadow the many failings of his tenure with the 49ers. Simply put, Smith didn’t lose his job because of a concussion. He lost his job because of his poor play in the playoffs last season. Though this may run counter to our memories of the great comeback he lead against the Saints, the reality is Smith held the offense back when it mattered the most.

Against New Orleans

Last season, the Saints were ranked 26th in total defense. They allowed almost two passing touchdowns a game, which ranked in the bottom five. Pro Football Focus (PFF) rated their pass coverage 28th, while Football Outsiders (FO) rated it 26th. In total, they were bad. Really bad. And yet, they managed to shut down Smith and the 49ers.

In the final three series, Smith led the offense to 205 yards, two touchdowns and a field goal. In the previous 13, Smith lead them to 186 yards, two touchdowns, two field goals, eight punts and one fumble. In seven of their 16 drives, the Smith-lead 49ers failed to gain more than eight yards.

Without the final two drives, Smith would have completed just 51% of his passes for 164 yards. That’s only 4.96 yards per attempt. Sure, he still led the team to two touchdowns. But, his role in these scoring drives was marginal at best. The first score was a 49 yard pass to Vernon Davis, 32 of which were gained by Davis after the catch. The next was set up by Dashon Goldson, who intercepted Drew Brees and took the ball to the Saints’ 4-yard line.

In all, Smith didn’t lead the 49ers to victory as much as his teammates did. 55.2% of his total yardage was gained after the catch. This is worse than Curtis Painter and Blaine Gabbert’s regular season numbers. 21% worse than T.J. Yates’ playoff performance for the Houston Texans. Those final two drives don’t compensate for an otherwise miserable game.

Against the New York Giants

The Giants’ defense was better than that of the Saints, but not by much. New York still ranked in the bottom ten by most major statistical measures. On the road, they’re even worse, giving up 40 more yards per game and five more points. PFF rated their secondary as the 17th best, while FO rated them 19th. Regardless of how bad the Giants’ defense was, Smith managed to be worse.

Smith completed only 46.2% of his passes, zero of which were drops, despite having an average 3.78 seconds to throw (nearly one full second more than Eli Manning had). He passed for just five first downs, a number that pales in comparison to Manning’s 17. He failed to convert a single third down on the day–the only conversion the 49ers had came on a 14-yard Kendall Hunter run.

In the fourth quarter, when the 49ers needed a rally, Smith proved incapable of providing one. On the last play of the game, Smith connected with Delanie Walker for a meaningless 29 yards. Prior to that, he had completed just three of nine for 11 yards.

The Aftermath

To say Smith was bad would be an understatement. Harbaugh’s secret offseason trip to watch Manning workout was a direct result of this. It was a reflection of Harbaugh’s belief in Smith. After all, how could it not be? Smith’s performance in the playoffs showcased his limitations. In essence, his play validated the “Smith-as-game-manager” argument that Harbaugh had furiously tried to refute.

Then his follow-up performance against the Giants in Week 6 of this season only reinforced the doubters. Smith’s ceiling as a professional is obvious. He can quarterback winning teams. He can put up good stats. Heck, he can even beat some elite quarterbacks. But he can’t win meaningful games. Not by himself, at least. He didn’t win the Divisional Playoff game. Vernon Davis did. Kyle Williams didn’t lose the Conference Playoff game. Alex Smith did. He didn’t win 19 of his last 25 games. His team did. And they’ll continue to win without him.

About the Author

A resident of California, East Bay Sports Guy (otherwise known as Scott Preston) often spends his time wearing v-necks -- sometimes deep, sometimes not -- and watching teams that play sports together as a team. You can follow Scott @SportsAnxiety.

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ill put it like this i feel bad for alex smith the way things have turned out. and he was playing decent football but there was to many times this year that he looked like the old alex. im not just talking stats. its much more than just stats. the way he looked in the pocket. would get happy feet and the hold the ball. he REFUSED to throw the ball down field. even just every once in a while to keep the defense honest. defenses started to realize that moss was nothing but a decoy and they began playing us like they were in years past. 8 or 9 in the box, stop gore and get up an bump our WR to throw off the timming of the short to medium passing game. with alex smith the playbook couldnt be fully open because there was no deep passing game. and the defense didnt respect it. with kaep the playbook will open up more and defense have a lot more to prepare for. but there is going to be some growing pains but thats why harbaugh made the switch now so kaep will have 7 starts by the playoffs. with our coaching staff those mistakes kaep made in the rams game he wont make again. give it some time and this offense could be down right scary. kaep is good. and hes going to be real good. he has had over a 100 game throws with only 1 interception so he is careful with the ball just like alex. lets just all be 49er faithful an be happy we have 2 good qbs. i feel bad for alex and he deserves 2 start somewhere but kaep is best for the long term. the more he plays the better he will get.

Do you seriously think that Harbaugh will let Kaepernick continue to play if he starts to falter? I hope not, because the fans and the ownership will be calling for Harbaughs head in the meantime. If Kaepernick has another bad game, I would bet my paycheck that Harbaugh would play Smith the following game. Harbaugh doesn't like to be second guessed, just listen to his press conferences the way he sidesteps questions and the "gobble, gobble" bs towards the media.

Why do I keep hearing Alex's stats for the last two games continually tossed out there?
"He's 25/27 with four TDs and no picks in his last two games"
Then as soon as I mention the sacks taken, awful third down percentage and 27th ranked passing attack...
"Alex is 20-6-1 under Harbaugh and wins are all that matters!!"
So the stats are good until they show a major deficiency?
Here's the reality that's been there since Harbaugh started Kaep against the Saints:
Harbaugh is making a switch. Even if he sounds non-commital at times, this is what he wants. He's not going to pull Kaep over some struggles. At this point, it's an investment that he's going to see through. You sometimes have to take a step back to move forward and that's what this is. Kaep will make some mistakes that Alex won't, but there's no other way he'll learn if he's not starting.
If Harbaugh had waited until next year to have him start, people would still be up in arms saying the same things. It's like ripping a band aid off, at some point you gotta just do it and deal with some of the pain involved. Harbaugh is thinking long-term.
I didn't question Harbaugh when he played Smith because I understood what he was doing. He was never the long-term plan, but a safe stop gap while Harbaugh got Kaep ready to play. I don't like the way Smith plays, I never have, but I supported him when he was the starter. I suggest that everyone get behind Kaep because Smith won't be coming back unless there's an injury.

kaperknick still played well yesterday. he did have a few mistakes. but at the end of the day he gave us a chance to win multiple times. if it wasnt for walker dropping that touchdown or akers missing the kick we still should of won. everyone blames kaep for that game i think u need to blame alot on harbaugh and the coaching staff. that pitch? and then not trying to get more yards to make it a shorter kick for akers were bad decisions. last thing i will say is kaep made bad plays but the next time he got the ball he had that 50 yard run. and after the pitch the next drive was 96 yards and 8 mins. so my point being he responded well after the mistakes. and if it wasnt for kaeps 85 rushing yards we would of only had 62 yards rushing all day. i dont care if alex was in there he wouldnt of won the game either with no run game and constant pressure all day. offensive line needs to step up 2

kaperknick still played well yesterday. he did have a few mistakes. but at the end of the day he gave us a chance to win multiple times. if it wasnt for walker dropping that touchdown or akers missing the kick we still should of won. everyone blames kaep for that game i think u need to blame alot on harbaugh and the coaching staff. that pitch? and then not trying to get more yards to make it a shorter kick for akers were bad decisions. last thing i will say is kaep made bad plays but the next time he got the ball he had that 50 yard run. and after the pitch the next drive was 96 yards and 8 mins. so my point being he responded well after the mistakes. and if it wasnt for kaeps 85 rushing yards we would of only had 62 yards rushing all day. i dont care if alex was in there he wouldnt of won the game either with no run game and constant pressure all day. offensive line needs to step up 2

According to Harbaugh, Kaepernick was the man by giving him the start in the Saints game and the start in the Rams game. Also by getting sacked in the end zone and a high pitch over the receivers head led to a recovery in the end zone, I would say that Kaepernick did indeed loose the game by himself.
He proved to me that he does not belong in the fire at this time. Let Smith run the team the rest of the year and let the chips fall where they may. If the 9ers make it to the playoffs with Smith, fine if not that's fine too. When the year is over then make the decision to change QB's not while Smith can still play.

As I predicted on Lowell's blog when everybody else said the 49ers would crush the Rams..I saw a bad omen!
And other things- The Rams play the 49ers tough and..I considered that Jeff Fisher had a pretty decent record I think vs John Harbaugh. I cant tell you what it was..but he has experience in Harball. It showed.

I think the key thing is, to defeat a team like the NY Giants or the other teams we lost to, you have to step up as a QB. Every team loses, it is a pretty difficult feat to have a winning season without a single loss. There are key games that we must win, and if you lose those key games confidence is lost on that QB.
That QB is Alex Smith, and I think the 49ers lost confidence in him despite some amazing games he played. The NFCCG game Alex could have won despite Kyle William's miscues had he stepped up and threw for more touchdowns. That was a game where in order to make it to the SB he has to step it up so if something like Kyle's mistakes happened, it still wouldn't have made a difference - as Alex would have been "on fire." Unfortunately, that did not happen and all chips fell on Kyle.

Your argument is false on it's face and relies on the worst kind of statistical cherry picking:
If Smith had lost the job based on his play last postseason, then he would not have been brought back on a new contract. The Niners made that choice AFTER his postseason. Therefore he must have lost it based on something this season. Simple stuff.
Also you rely on the worst kind of statistical cherry picking, what you've essentially said is that "if you take away all the good things he did, all that's left is bad".
Then you cite the Giants regular season numbers but leave out Smith's regular season performance against them where his numbers were far above their season averages. Meanwhile, in 4 playoff games the Giants shutdown Matt Ryan, Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady, none of whom had better numbers than Smith did. And Smith played the NFCC with only one of his top 4 WR and an injured Delanie Walker. Way to not provide context!
Notice I haven't disagreed with the idea that Kaep should start, because that conclusion I agree with. But that decision was based on Kaep's and Alex's performances THIS YEAR with this team's weapons.

I have a hard time with a lot of EBSG's comments about this.
It's fair to say that after seeing Kaepernick play in 2+ games, Harbaugh has decided that the team is better off starting Kaepernick. But to say that Smith was demoted carries the connotation that his job was taken away because he had done something wrong or wasn't performing well. That certainly wasn't the case. In his last 2 games he completed 25 of 27 passes, those are ridiculous numbers. EBSG even stats by saying "There is no denying that Alex Smith has played well."
Then his argument takes a different and contradictory turn, "But Smith’s recent success shouldn’t overshadow the many failings of his tenure with the 49ers."
HUH, he's playing well, he's been playing well for for the past year and a half since Harbaugh took over, he made the Pro Bowl last year, but suddenly that is overshadowed by the many failings of his tenure with the 49ers. You mean we should suddenly be worrying about his failures during the Nolan and Singletary years?
But the real essence of EBSG's argument is that Smith "lost his job because of his poor play in the playoffs last season."
Really, he lost his job then? How come no one told him at the time. Most of us remember the fabulous New Orleans game and Alex's break through, heroic performance. To go back to that game, cherry pick the stats to exclude the biggest plays and then say that if you take out his best plays, the rest of what he did wasn't all that great is ridiculous revisionist history. No one would have agreed with it at the time and there's no reason to agree with that now.
Against the Giants, Smith was good enough to win ( 12-26, 196 yards, 2 TD, no interceptions) and would have won has it not been for that unfortunate fumble.
The Giants went on to win the Super Bowl and although EBSG claims their defense wasn't very good because of their overall season numbers, by the end of the season, they were playing very well. Ask Tom Brady.
Harbaugh certainly has the right to start whoever he chooses at QB but I think the tone of this piece is misplaced by attempting to disparage Alex by suggesting that he has failed. Not many would look at his performance over the past two seasons and claimed that he has failed.

Kicking a guy when he's down is fine I guess, but your take is nothing more than cherry picked statistics to support your own forgone conclusion.
Arguing that Alex Smith didn't play we'll against New Orleans is so ludicrous it doesn't even warrant a response. Everybody saw the game. That's unfortunate for you.
As for New York, no doubt Smith didn't play great, especially in the second half. But then, that same Giants defense stifled Aaron Rodgers the week before and obliterated Matt Ryan the week before that. Sometimes you might want to admit that the other guys are pretty good. Just to prove the point, the Giants blasted both the Packers and Niners again this year. Kaepernick might get a shot at the Giants this year and we'll see what happens.
I saw Kyle Williams lose a tough, physical game where neither team moved the ball in the second half with his two late turnovers. Ted Ginn plays, 49ers win. It's that simple.
Harbaugh thinks Kaepernick is better. Fine. Don't really see the point in a silly argument trying to explain how bad Alex Smith is, though. It's simply not true.

everytime we played a good defense alex struggled. if we didnt run the ball well. alex struggled if the defense doesnt hold the other team to a low amount of points.. alex struggled. point is everything had to go right for alex to succeed. alex refused to go down field or give his recievers chances to make plays. even with all these new weapons on offense we still are not efficent in the pass game. and how does veron davis get no catches for 4 straight games? makes no sense, specially cause if the other team takes away veron then wheres moss? crabtree? maningham? alex couldnt get them involved because he is too safe and wont give them an oppurtinity to make plays. we are the #1 rushing team in the leauge and he still couldnt do anything in the pass game? dont make sense.... its more than just numbers. 70% completion is easy to do when u never throw the ball farther than 10 or 15 yards

i hate how everyone keeps saying kaepernick had "Alex Smith" numbers against the saints and theres no difference between the 2 qbs. they dont mention the 2 plays to crabtree and veron that were brought back cause of a penelty. those both were atleast 25 yards each. and the one prefect pass to veron in the first quarter that he dropped. at least 25 yards right there probably 30 or 40 those 3 plays alone would give him well over 300 yards. and last thing kapernick was strong in all the areas that alex is weak. 3rd down completions and big plays. plus he takes less sacks.

I am still in the camp that says inexperience in the playoffs will ultimately hurt the 49ers THIS year, but CK is the QB of the future. Its not the plays Kaepernick can make, but the mistakes he will make that will undo them in January. Alex turned the corner enough last year, so that with this team his 'Dilferesque' lack of mistakes, and accuracy would be enough to get to the Super Bowl. I still think its hubris to do this QB change now, and if the Niners fall short of the Championship game that will bear itself out. That said, well written article, and interesting perspective.

WOW i must have watched a diffrent 9er Giants playoff game then you because you said there where no dropped balls in that game. I remember very clearly watching Crabtree drop several balls that would have been first downs in that game. Balls that hit Crabtree right in the hands and he still dropped them.

You missed by a country mile by trying to argue that Alex had a poor game against the Saints. 299 yards, 3 TDs, another one rushing, a higher rating than Drew Brees.
We can compare, since WonderBoy (Kaepernick) just started a game against the same weak defense last week. Alex's numbers against the Saints were WAY better. WAY.
You can bring up the two games against the Giants or Alex's previous seasons, but disparaging his excellent and inspirational performance in that playoff game is illogical to the point of being mean.
It makes you sound like a zombie apologist for Harbaugh, too.

Sorry - can't agree with this article. You can throw out any players good plays and make them look like crap. That's not analysis it's cherry picking.
In the Saints game the guy stepped up when it counted. In the Giants game we never really got that chance, so who knows.
I like CK and think he's the future, but I don't see any point in diminishing Alex Smith to justify the change. Alex worked his ass off and worked through some truly horrendous situations to show that he could play in the NFL, and that deserves some respect as well as some empathy for his current situation.

Nobody is going to be calling for harbaughs head except complete idiots. Seeing as he was able to take this team from a decade of futility to a deep playoff run in a single (lockout shortened even!) season, he's earned the right to do whatever the hell he wants for awhile.

Of *course* the media will make a big deal out of this -- that's what they do.
I don't know that Kaepernick ever was "the man"; what he is, is a good young QB with a wealth of real physical gifts and talent, who is still somewhat raw and still makes young QB mistakes sometimes. He should keep getting better, and this game should be a hard lesson, but a good one.
But just as Kaepernick didn't win the Bears or Saints games alone, he didn't lose this Rams game by himself either. Some of what we saw today is probably a result of defenses now having had a chance to see Kaepernick on film and dissect not only his play, but how the coaching staff uses him. I.e. he's no longer a surprise weapon.
Much as I don't like the circumstances that put Alex on the sideline and Kaepernick behind center, I think now that Harbaugh has started him a couple times they need to stay with Kaepernick for now -- flip-flopping is probably even more disruptive overall than the original QB change might have been.

Why did Harbaugh and the 49ers go after Manning then? Was it because Smith's play proved he was capable of winning difficult games? His two good series against the Saints must have been enough evidence, huh?

I could NOT Agree more with this above poster.
This was Ground Zero article for cherry picking stats to try and prove your point.
First off, I'm perfectly content with Kap starting the rest of the season. That's NOT the argument.
BUT, to try and make the argument that the New York Giants were only marginally better on Defense last year based purely on statistics IS OUTRIGHT Shortsighted at best. Egregious at Worst.
All you have to do is to look at the Giants of this year (basically the same outfit) and look at the two biggest games they've had:San Francisco and Green Bay to see their ability to dial it up about ten notches when they're facing quality opponents.
Furthermore, New Orleans had the capability to get to the QB by blitzing up the middle with their LB's (that was the basis of their defense). New York ON THE OTHER Hand,has the capacity to get to the QB with their Front 4 better than almost anyone. This means that their LB's can cover the middle and close out the short to intermediate stuff. The Saints on the other hand, left pretty much themselves exposed if their Blitzes were NOT getting to the QB (which they didn't)
Let's get this straight: Alex Smith was NOT demoted because of his own play. Alex Smith was DEMOTED because of Kaepernick's play: Pure and Simple.

Yeah. You watched a different game. Smith target Crabtree four times. 1 was caught for three yards. Two were out of bounds and one was at his feet. Which is to say, three of the four weren't catchable.

Can't compare the two saints games. Kaep had a big lead and did not need to put up big numbers like Alex did.
Also I think Kaep is better fit for the team. Yeah Alex can manage a game well and not turn it over, but CK really opens things up for the offense. Since the defense is so dominating turning the ball over once in a while isn't so bad if it allows the offense to open up and become way way wayyyy more dangerous.
Defenses now have to account for a QB that can make plays with his feet(usually taking a defender away from other duties). They also have to account for the deep ball, opening up things in the middle and making it so they can't stack the box against the run.
CK is the man!!!

And choose the regular season Giants D numbers because they make them look bad. But don't mention Smith's regular season success against them because that would make him look good. But do mention his lack of success against the Giants in the playoffs because that makes him look bad. But don't mention the lack of success of all 3 other QBs (all of them Pro Bowlers) the Giants faced in the playoffs because that makes him look good. Get the picture?
And yes, throwing out 3 of the 16 drives he played in because you don't like them is cherry picking too. If you don't realize that then you don't know what the term means.

Since there was the possibility of acquiring one of the great QBs of all time, the Niners felt obliged to look into it and chose not to pursue it.
Again, your revisionist statistics, that throw out the good and look only at the bad to prove that Smith played poorly when we all saw that he played great is ridiculous.
I suppose you're about to argue that if you exclude Kaepernick's grounding from the end zone which gave the Rams 2 points and his bad pitch to Ginn that gave the Rams another 7 points, he had a great game.

Giants have a great pass rush, JZ. You're right. Had you read the post, you'd have seen that Smith had an average of 3.78 seconds per drop back to make a throw (This season he's average 2.89 seconds). That's an outrageous amount of time. So... what else do you have?

My comment addresses significant inconsistencies that in your data the invalidate your statistical arguments.
To argue about how well the Giants defense played that game is about as ridiculous as arguing that the Giants defense wasn't very good that day, Alex Smith didn't play well against a mediocre defense, and therefore was demoted.

I’m glad you finally admit that your argument is weak and misleading.
Although you contend that “at least [you] have a statistical argument”, I disagree. Because of all the cherry picking of individual drives and plays you’ve come up with some numbers that don’t stand up as legitimate statistical data to support any conclusion.
Finally you turn things around to ask for evidence to the contrary. That’s kind of backwards for someone trying to prove a dubious conclusion that Smith lost his job “because of his play and not the concussion.”
Well I’ve got a simple question, who would have started against the Bears, Saints, and Rams if Alex hadn’t gotten that concussion in the first Rams game?

I'm glad you finally admit that your argument is weak and misleading.
Although you contend that "at least [you] have a statistical argument", I disagree. Because of all the cherry picking of individual drives and plays you've come up with some numbers that don't stand up as legitimate statistical data to support any conclusion.
Finally you turn things around to ask for evidence to the contrary. That's kind of backwards for someone trying to prove a dubious conclusion that Smith lost his job "because of his play and not the concussion."
Well I've got a simple question, who would have started against the Bears, Saints, and Rams if Alex hadn't gotten that concussion in the first Rams game?

As weak and misleading as it may be, at least I have a statistical argument. You're relying on what exactly to prove your point? An argument that commits the fallacy of hasty generalization? An appeal to ignorance, maybe?
My argument doesn't commit a straw man fallacy. You're point is that the Giants defense was so good that any quarterback would have failed against them. My argument is that the strength of the defense is no excuse. Quarterbacks that win meaningful games beat good defenses. Eli Manning did. So, yes, Smith is no Manning. And that's the point. That's why he lost his job.
Further, the Giants defense was even THAT good when they played the 49ers.
As per the discussion of the Saints' game, you're committing the straw man fallacy yourself. A good QB is not measured by yardage and TDs. I never argued as much. I argued that he was plain bad on his other 13 drives because he was. I used statistical evidence to support that.
If you have evidence to the contrary, provide it. Please. I'd love for this conversation to go somewhere.

Now you are throwing out strawmen left and right. Let's get those out of the way. Of course Eli is a better QB than Smith, that wasn't the original premise I disagreed with. Of course I'd rather have Peyton Manning. In fact, as of right now, even after the Rams game I want them to start Colin Kaepernick over Alex because I do see Alex's shortcomings. So drop the pretext that the only way someone could possibly not see things your way is if they are some kind of Alex worshipper.
The only thing we are arguing about is that you are presenting a weak and misleading statistical case about how bad you think Alex played.
You're continuing this when you insist that it's damning that he only had 3 good drives that accounted for most of his yards and TDs. I have no idea how unusual that is for QBs in general or even elite QBs. My memory from the NFCC is that Eli only had 2 or 3 good drives all game too. I doubt it's really rare to have yards distributed that way. What if we took away the top 3 most successful drives from every QB in every game? Do you know what would be left? I don't. So how do I know it would make Alex look bad? Why should I discount Alex's performance because it was distributed that way?

"I chose his cumulative stats because those were available."
HUH? In some cases you used stats only when they were available AND advanced your argument about the mediocrity of the Giants defense even though they didn't reflect the performance of the Giants defense on the day Smith played them.
You're right that isn't cherry picking, that's comparing apples to oranges. No wonder you ended up with a fruit basket of invalid data.

I chose his cumulative stats because those were available. If you had read the article, you'd have noticed that it is specific to his performance in the playoffs last year, not his time with Nolan and Singletary.
If you have ANY evidence that suggests Smith played well enough for the 49ers to beat the Giants, I'm open to it. But in the meantime, go ahead and continue to disregard anything that doesn't fit your conception of Smith.

Smith's regular season performance against the Giants wasn't relevant BUT the Giants entire regular season defensive statistics were?
Smith's regular season performance against the Giants wasn't relevant BUT you write that " Smith’s recent success shouldn’t overshadow the many failings of his tenure with the 49ers." Does that mean that his performance during the Nolan and Singletary are relevant.
Your flailing around picking and choosing what data to use, which plays to include, what is relevant render all your statistics totally meaningless.
at the same time you say that
Smith's regular season performance against the Giants wasn't relevant BUT
You are picking and choosing what's relevant subjectively and
You are blatantly cherry picking what you consider relevant to prove what you are trying to

I choose the Giants' D cumulative stats, not just regular season. I didn't mention Smith's regular season performance because that's not relevant to the discussion.
Sure, the Giants D played better in the postseason. So does that excuse Smith's poor performance?
I think we'd all agree that the 49ers' D was better than the Giants' at the time. And yet, Manning was far and away the better QB that day. Why? He averaged nearly one second fewer than Smith to throw the ball. His receivers had 4 drops. He was pressured 29 times (compared to 19 for Smith). Oh, and he played on the road. He clearly had the more difficult job. And yet, he succeeded.
And, I'm not throwing out the final two drives against the Saints because "I don't like them." I'm simply drawing attention to the other 20 minutes or so of the game in which Smith was clearly subpar. I'm drawing attention to the fact that Vernon Davis and Dashon Goldson, not Smith, were the heros of the game.
That is not cherry picking. That is pointing out the obvious. That is pointing out what we all saw. What Harbaugh apparently saw too. He didn't court Peyton Manning to put to rest the Smith-as-game-manager moniker.

I don't believe Harbaugh & Baalke felt "obliged" to do anything. According to Harbaugh, the media (apparently including EBSG?) made a lot more of the visit to see the elder Manning than there was.
We'll never know either way because Harbaugh keeps his own counsel, and no other; but I don't believe it's particularly relevant in any case.
EBSG, you are coming off very much as someone who is kicking a good guy when he's down, moreso as you defend your points in follow-on posts. I'd like to think that's not your intention, because I don't think Smith deserves it, and I think most of the commentary on BASG is better than e.g. Boomer Esiason in a "CBS Sports Minute" last week.

No, you should look at the statistics that were, not the one's that would have been if you excluded the plays you chose to throw away to confirm your dubious thesis.
Anyone with any scientific expertise understands that you look at data to reach conclusions. What you've done is confabulate conclusions and search for numbers that create a phony impression of objective support.

Why did they feel "obliged"? If Smith was so "great" in the Playoffs, why risk losing him to Seattle or Miami? Why not sign him right away?
So by your logic, I should exclude Smith's 40 or so other plays because on 6 of them he was great. Just as I should harp on Kaepernick's two errors (one of which wasn't an error. That wasn't intentional grounding) and exclude his other 40 or so other plays. That seems logical.

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